Young cancer patient's wish
fuels debate over animal rights

May 17, 1996
Web posted at: 7:20 p.m. EDT

From CNN Correspondent Sharon Collins

ATLANTA, Georgia (CNN) -- A teen-age cancer patient's wish for the hunting trip of a lifetime has sparked a war of words over wildlife and wishes.

When you're in the business of granting wishes to kids with serious illness, controversy doesn't often come calling.

But the Make-A-Wish Foundation became ensnared in a big dispute this week, caught in the cross-fire between animal protection groups and big-game hunters.

Seventeen year-old Erik Ness cherishes hunting. When doctors diagnosed him with a brain tumor last year, Safari Club International helped Make-A-Wish arrange his dream -- an Alaskan hunt for the legendary Kodiak bear.

Kodiak hunting is legal. The bears aren't endangered, but trophy hunting outrages many animal lovers.

The objections of animal rights activists to the hunting expedition drew criticism from Ron Marlenee of Safari Club International. "This particular instance exposes them for what they are -- they have a very warped sense of values, they're self-serving," said Marlenee.

But John Gandy of the Humane Society of the United States called for a kinder, gentler society. "It's got to start with the way we treat ourselves, each other, and our fellow creatures with whom we share this earth," he said. "That's what this is about."

Erik and his father got their 10-day bear hunt as the controversy raged. Make-A-Wish officials say the war of words made them think but also made them angry.

"The national board of directors, in coordination with the chapters, will be reviewing our policies as they relate to wishes involving hunting," said Doug Elmets of the Make-A-Wish Foundation.

"In the meantime, we have a request to make. The animal rights activists fight with hunters all the time, across the country, over what's appropriate and not appropriate. Our request is that you go fight someplace else."

However in this latest episode of the perpetual debate between hunters and animal rights activists, both sides agree that there's good news. In a newspaper interview this week, Erik's mother said surgery and treatment have stopped the cancer for now.

Related Sites

• Make-a-Wish Foundation
• Alaska Safari Club

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